US Customs orders two additional King Air 350CER aircraft

Textron Aviation announced Tuesday it was awarded a contract for the 26th and 27th Beechcraft King Air 350CER turboprop aircraft for the U.S. Customs and Border Protection Air and Marine Operations (AMO).

The Beechcraft King Air 350CER is designed and manufactured by Textron Aviation Inc.

“These two Multi-role Enforcement Aircraft will join a fleet of King Air 350 turboprops used to safeguard the United States as part of the coordinated application of AMO’s aviation and maritime law enforcement resources,” said Bob Gibbs, vice president, Special Mission Sales. “This represents the third and fourth Beechcraft King Air 350CER ordered for AMO in 2020.”

The agency’s aircraft are equipped with a sophisticated array of technology that can be deployed for ground interdiction operations, air-to-air intercept operations and medium-range maritime patrols, including active and passive sensors and an optimized communications suite.

The Beechcraft King Air 350CER aircraft is an extended range version of the King Air 350i twin-engine turboprop aircraft. Two Pratt & Whitney Canada PT6A-60A or optional factory installed PT6A-67A turboprop engines with Hartzell four blade propellers power the King Air 350CER aircraft.

Nearly 7,600 Beechcraft King Air turboprops have been delivered to customers around the world since 1964.

US aerospace and defense exports expected to increase by 3.2 percent in 2016

Gross exports in the U.S. aerospace and defense sector increased by $5 billion in 2015, a 58.9 percent increase in the last five years, according to Deloitte's "U.S.Aerospace & Defense Export Competitiveness Study."

Looking forward, the U.S. aerospace and defense sector's gross exports are expected to increase by 3.2 percent in 2016. This is largely due to an increased pipeline of defense platform products announced and expected for foreign military sales by U.S. defense contractors

"The U.S. aerospace and defense sector was the largest contributor to America's net exports during the 2010 to 2015 period," said Tom Captain, vice chairman, Deloitte LLP. “The sector is also a top employer, taxpayer and contributor to the nation's gross domestic product, making it key to U.S. manufacturing competitiveness."

During the 2010 to 2015 period analyzed in the survey, the U.S. aerospace and defense sector was responsible for the following:

• Sector accounted for 9.5 percent of total U.S. exports in 2015, with the sector's contribution increasing from 7.1 percent of total exports in 2010.
• U.S. accounted for 33 percent of global defense exports in 2015.
• Total aerospace and defense gross exports in 2015 were $143.3 billion, a significant increase of 58.9 percent over the last five years.
• China was the largest aerospace and defense export market for the U.S. in 2015, followed by the U.K. and France.

The top five exporting states - Washington, California, Connecticut, Texas and Georgia - accounted for about 61 percent of the total aerospace and defense sector exports in 2015. Washington state also showed a strong 109.4 percent increase in exports in 2015 compared to 2010 as the state that continues to have the largest presence in the commercial aircraft manufacturing subsector.